The invention relates to an apparatus for shaping cuboidal (cigarette) packs immediately after their completion and for setting glue points of the packs, in which apparatus several pockets, for receiving at least one pack each and having a cross-section corresponding to the shape of the pack, are arranged on a common conveyor and thus form a drying turret.
Such drying turrets are part of packaging machines for the production of cuboidal packs with adhesively bonded folding tabs. These drying turrets are especially found in cigarette packaging machines. The adhesively bonded folding tabs of such cigarette packs require a minimum period for a hardening of the glue and therewith for a stabilization of the shape of the pack.
Such a drying turret for receiving cigarette packs of the hinge-lid pack type is for example disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,084,393. A plurality of pockets arranged along the periphery of the drying turret serve for receiving one cigarette pack each. The cross-section of the pockets is adapted to the dimensions of the packs. The panels of the pack are subjected to a small shaping pressure. In addition, the pockets are heated in order to accelerate a setting of the glue.
A further development of such a drying turret is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,715. This publication also shows proposals for an efficient feeding of the packs to the drying turret and for discharging the hardened packs.